Working in Vietnam
I thought that I would write a post on the process of getting work in Vietnam. It isn’t an easy process and at times I found it stressful and time consuming. However, if you really want something, then you will do it.
First of all, you need a degree. You can not work legally in Vietnam without a degree. I am not saying that you won’t find work without a degree because a lot of places are willing to take you on, paying you cash in hand. I have a BA Hons and an MSc and therefore did not have the problem of finding a ‘cash in hand’ job.
Secondly, depending on what you wish to do career wise in Vietnam, you need a TEFL qualification if you wish to teach. Most places requires a TEFL with 120+ hours with some teaching experience.
You must get your degrees and TEFL notarised and legalised before leaving the U.K. You can not do this in Vietnam.
You will also need an up to date DBS check.
Depending on if you find a career opportunity before you move to Vietnam, the company will provide you with a business letter. This allows you to get a visa on arrival at the airport (multi entry is $50, you must have the correct change in the US dollars).
Once you start your job, you are required to get a work permit. The work permit states that you are legally working in Vietnam and therefore you can open a bank account (ACB is my chosen bank) and you can transfer money back to the U.K. You can also renew your visa without leaving the country (this has to be renewed every 3 months).
You also must have a health check - this includes x-ray, blood, urine and an overall check over.
You must also register with the local police station.
The work permit takes about a month to be processed.
As for work? You don’t have to take the first job you are offered. If you have the relevant qualifications then you will find a job here. When I moved here, I was going to work for APAX English. However, I discovered that it was not really teaching during my training with them. It was a very structured and rigid way of teaching English to Vietnamese children using a smart tv. I don’t think this is teaching, unless you like teaching off a script.
I went onto work for an agency, teaching classes of three to five year olds. I found this work extremely stress free and it was really enjoyable. However, due to lack of hours I went onto a third job.
This third job was at a private school, teaching English, Maths and science to grade seven, eight and nine. I loved it, however, confrontation with the agency made me question whether this was an agency to work for? If you work through an agency, they will take some of your wage and they will try to fine you for minor issues. The school wanted to employ me without the agency but because it was too far away I was unable to get there without the agency’s transportation.
Within a day of leaving, I was employed by a company . I am not naming the company as I do not wish people to kno where I work. However, this company works with public schools where parents pay collectively to be taught English, maths and science by western teachers. I love it! I teach maths and science to grade seven at various schools which is really satisfying because I get to expand my mind and inspire young minds. The money is great, there are incentives available to earn even more money and they are really helpful with getting work permits and giving information on anything that is required. I will talk more about this on another post...thank you for reading!
